


love-parched

by JazzGirl123



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: A little bit of everything, F/M, based on edorazzi's mentor au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-14
Updated: 2019-02-14
Packaged: 2019-10-28 00:32:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,403
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17777165
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JazzGirl123/pseuds/JazzGirl123
Summary: sometimes the best things in life don't go according to plan. sometimes, you find love in mysterious ways. sometimes, the love you're searching for isn't the love you need.based on edorazzi's mentor au on tumblr





	love-parched

**Author's Note:**

> So I had this fantastic story planned out, and I'm really hoping it turns out even as half as good as it did in my head. Definitely not as long as I wanted, but definitely not as short as I had expected.
> 
> I really hope you guys like it and if you don't know about edorazzi's mentor au, I highly suggest you check her blog about for all of her of lovely art! Links in the bottom notes!

“Can I add more sprinkles?”

“Of  _ course _ !”

Adrien blinked as Bridgette poured more than half the bottle of sprinkles onto the cookies he had been decorating.

“You can never have too many sprinkles,” she told him, ruffling his hair before going back to cutting out the red paper heart chains. 

“That’s certainly debatable,” remarked Felix as he came in through the door, setting several bags of groceries on the counter. “It looks positively….pink in here.”

“We’re not done yet.” Bridgette kissed her fiance’s cheek as he began unpacking the food, waving Adrien away when he tried to help them. “The apartment will be bursting with red and pink hearts when Adrien and I are done!”

Felix sighed dramatically, but Adrien could tell the older boy wasn’t really annoyed as he smiled at his fiancee.

“Valentine’s Day always was one of your favorite holidays,” commented Felix, placing a container of red sprinkles next to the cookie sheet, peering at the baked goodies as he did. “The cookies look….sugary.”

“Adrien’s been working hard on them,” replied Bridgette, moving her decorations to the coffee table. “Haven’t you, sweetie?”

Adrien nodded proudly, gazing down at the (probably over-sugary) heart-shaped cookies she had taught him to make.

“Thank you for letting me help you,” he said. 

Bridgette scoffed.

“Please, you’re helping me more than the other way around. If you’d like, you can start on the next batch while the cake is finishing up in the oven.”

Adrien heard Felix mutter something about too many sweets again, making the young hero smile in amusement. Sometimes it entertained him about different the older couple could be at times, but miraculously still perfectly in sync, in love.

“What are you guys doing for Valentine’s Day tomorrow?” He asked, watching Felix peck Bridgette on the cheek. “Anything special?”

“Bridgette celebrates enough for the both of us,” remarked Felix, narrowly avoiding her playful swat. “We have dinner plans at that restaurant by the Tower. She loves the shrimp special they have there.”

“And the garlic bread,” added Bridgette, making her fiance snort. “But other than that, no, sweetie, we don’t really have plans. Why do you ask?”

Adrien shrugged, getting the wax paper out to put on the new sheet.

“I guess I’m looking for ideas for something Ladybug and I could do,” he admitted, a bit quietly as he glanced at his mentors from the corner of his eye. “I know she doesn’t return my feelings, but I mean….we can still do something, right?”

“You could,” said Felix, a bit slowly. It was no secret how he felt about the current Ladybug, so it was a heated choice between alienating her or genuinely helping his ward. “I suppose there are some things you could do with her for Valentine’s Day, without seeming overly romantic. I’m afraid neither Bridgette nor I would be able to help with that.”

“Really?” Adrien looked between them, confused. 

Bridgette gestured around the apartment, explaining, “Sweetie, we’re both too over the line. I take it to the nines, and Felix….well, he bought me a whole truck of roses for our first Valentine’s Day because he didn’t know how much would be enough.”

“ _ Bridgette _ .” Felix flushed, embarrassed, before he looked back at the young hero. “Well, what were you planning on doing originally, Adrien?”

“Um….well, the last time I did a candlelit dinner on the rooftops, it didn’t end too well,” murmured Adrien. “So I thought maybe we could do something less….well, just less. Like get her favorite pizza from Antonio’s Pizzeria, and watch a movie or something. I was going to bring my laptop and we could, I dunno, watch whatever she wants. But we can do that any day, not that we have before but….”

“That sounds perfect, honestly, Adrien,” cooed Bridgette, bouncing over to him and kissing his forehead. “The red hearts, the pink balloons….it’s not always what people want for their perfect Valentine’s Day. And the best holidays sometimes don’t always go as planned.”

Adrien smiled and leaned into her. The older woman wasn’t that much taller than him (in fact, without her heels, he probably had her beat) but he happily rested his head on her shoulder.

“Thanks, you guys,” he replied. “What did you guys do for your first Valentine’s Day?”

Felix sighed as he finished putting the rest of the groceries away.

“Speaking of holidays not going as planned…” He pinched the brim of his nose. “It had been in our last year of school, and I agreed to go on a date with Bridgette for the first time…”

.

“I can’t believe you bought a whole truck of flowers!” Bridgette took a bite of her cupcake, laughing as her date flushed pink. “It was very sweet though, Felix. Thank you. And thank you for setting up this picnic; it’s gorgeous!”

Felix touched the back of his neck, looking around the meadow clearing they had set up lunch in. A rose-covered gazebo sat nearby, the rest of the food packed away neatly inside.

“I haven’t been on a date before, not like this, and I didn’t know how much would be appropriate,” he admitted. “That, and I didn’t know which flowers you liked.”

“I would have loved anything you got me,” she assured, wiping the crumbs off her hands. “It actually helped with my nerves a lot; I was crazy nervous when you picked me up, but seeing how cute you looked, how hard you tried, it made me relax.”

“I’m glad,” he said honestly, taking another sip of his tea. “I...had a good time today, Bridgette; I have to admit, I didn’t expect to.”

“I’m surprised you said yes to the date,” remarked Bridgette, absently playing with the ribbons in her hair. She had changed them to pink, just for the date. “You normally….don’t.”

“Would you believe me if I said I had a change of heart?” Felix sighed, trying to find the right words to explain himself. “I know I haven’t always been….welcoming of your company in the last few years.”

Bridgette raised an eyebrow at him.

“I haven’t forgotten you literally climbing over a gate to avoid me,” she said flatly. “A cat landed on your head.”

“That wasn’t my fault, it was Friday the Thirteenth,” protested Felix. He mentally cursed Plagg, and cleared his throat. “But yes, that’s a good example. I’m not saying I’m suddenly in love with you or anything dramatic; I just realized...being with you sounded  _ nice _ . I don’t think I care for you the way you do for me, but I think I could one day. If….you’re alright with that.”

Bridgette blinked at him before she moved forward, as if she was going to hug him, then reconsidered and put her hand on top of his instead.

“I’m perfectly fine with that, Felix,” she said softly. “I mean, all I’ve ever wanted is for you to-”

“ _ LOVE ME _ !”

Bridgette and Felix jumped, looking towards the path that led back to the rest of the park. The screams that followed the shout could only mean one thing.

“We have to move out of here.” 

Felix grabbed Bridgette’s hand and pulled her to her feet, sprinting to under the tree tops, just as a woman walked into the clearing.

She had long dark hair, a glittering pink dress, and a gold locket around her neck. Aside from her lack of shoes, she looked like an ordinary, non-akumatized woman who looked not much older than them. Well, she’d be normal if she didn’t look like the most beautiful woman alive, or had an army of lovesick fools trailing behind her.

(Well, she didn’t have to be an akuma for that either but-)

“Oh, how romantic,” cooed the woman, approaching the abandoned picnic blanket. “A cute little lunch date. Without me!”

She snapped her fingers, and someone from the crowd broke off to immediately begin destroying the picnic. 

“I worked hard on those macaroons!” Bridgette hissed, and Felix grabbed her arm to stop her from going out to fight someone. 

“The deed is done, Aphrodite!” The person exclaimed, dropping to his knees and bowing down to the woman. “Shall I set up a shine for you in its place?”

“Of course! Not like it was doing good for anyone else.” The woman, Aphrodite, turned back to her crowd. “Let us go find more people to worship me, Aphrodite, the goddess of love! No goddess should be alone on Valentine’s Day, after all!”

“Let’s get out of here,” murmured Felix. “Before she sees us.”

He looked behind him, only to see that Bridgette was gone already. Furrowing his eyebrows, he turned back to the picnic only to see Ladybug leap down from the trees, going straight for Aphrodite, who screamed and moved out of the way barely in time.

Felix was just about to call Plagg to transform, seeing as his date was nowhere around now, when he noticed-

Ladybug’s ribbons were pink today.

“No  _ way _ .”

.

“Wait, wait, it was your first date and you found out who she was?” Adrien nearly missed putting the popcorn in his mouth as he listened to his mentors’ story. “That seems too good to be true, like a cheesy cartoon or something.”

“In my defense, I believed my ribbons would be red like usual when I transformed,” remarked Bridgette, putting more snacks on the coffee table before sitting next to her fiance. “Although it could have just been a crazy coincidence, which I could have played off when Felix asked-”

“You threw the tea at Aphrodite and told her she didn’t know good macaroons even when if it hit her in the face, and then you threw them in her face,” said Felix flatly. “I love you, Bridgette, but you have a tendency to go...off the rails.”

Bridgette leaned up and kissed his cheek.

“It’s part of why you love me though!” She snuggled against him, smiling. “Anyways, everything after that was pretty simple. Felix joined in, and we managed to take down Aphrodite. I felt kinda bad for her, in the end.”

“Why, what happened?” Adrien reached for some of the cookies Bri had brought out. “I mean, if she wanted someone to love her on Valentine’s Day….”

“Apparently, the person she had liked asked someone else to be their Valentine’s Day date, and she felt betrayed by that,” explained Felix. “It was her best friend, if my memory is right.”

“The day of love can bring a lot of heartache sometimes too,” said Bridgette, clicking her tongue.

“Oh, I know about that.” Adrien sighed. “That’s all the more reason why I want to keep things simple for Ladybug tomorrow. I mean, the best way is probably to do nothing, but I don’t know. She means so much to me, as a partner and friend, and everything else. And I don’t think she takes me seriously, even now.”

Felix hummed.

“Then she’s missing out, simple as that,” he told him. “If you’re meant to be, you’ll be together eventually. Right now though, it’s best to be her friend, even if you want to be something more, no, especially if you want to be something more.”

“Wow.” Adrien blinked. “Thank you, Felix.”

“Blegh, as if he knows anything about romance!” Plagg poked his head out of his current holder’s pocket. “I had to teach this kitten everything there is to know about romance! Who do you think gave him the idea to recite Shakespearean sonnets to Ladybug every night?”

“It was almost a peaceful evening,” murmured Felix, massaging his temple. “I even forgot you were here.”

“Can’t have that!” Plagg flew out into the open, yawning. “Your boring story put me to sleep! I didn’t need to hear it again, you know; I was there the first time!”

“I remember, you made a bunch of cats come join us on our picnic later,” said Bridgette, reaching out to stroke the kwami under his chin. “There’s cheese in the fridge.”

“See, I always like her.” Plagg flew in the space between Bridgette and Felix, hitting his former holder in the face with his tail as he did. “Yummy, yummy, cheese! The only love I need in my life!”

“As if you and Tikki weren’t sharing heart-shaped snacks at that picnic,” remarked Felix, rolling his eyes. “But honestly, Adrien, if you already have a plan for what you want to do with Ladybug, then do it. Even if things don’t go according to plan, you can at least say you tried.”

“He’s right, sweetie.” Bridgette smiled softly at their young ward. “Just go out and have a good time with her.”

Adrien hummed, thinking of last Valentine’s Day, of that romantic confession he had been sure was from his partner. His disastrous candlelit dinner let him know that he had been pretty off about how the heroine felt about him, but his mentor was right; at least he had tried.

“Thanks, you guys.” He stood up and, after a moment of hesitation, went around the coffee table to embrace the two of them. “I appreciate it.”

Felix placed a hand on top of the hero’s head, running it through his hair. 

“You’re a good boy, Adrien,” he said softly. “You will find someone who makes you happy, the same way you’ll do for them.”

.

“This was a good idea, Chat Noir,” commented Ladybug, swinging her legs over the ledge of the rooftop they sat on, mouth full of pizza. “Like, a good way to unwind and relax after all the akumas this week.”

“It definitely seems like Hawkmoth is upping his game,” agreed Chat Noir, reaching for another slice. “Sorry I forgot my laptop though. I know how much you wanted to watch that movie.”

“Probably for the best we don’t watch a romantic comedy anyways,” his partner remarked, sighing. “A sad reminder for my even sadder love life.”

“Oof, that bad huh?” Chat nudged her shoulder with his own, ignoring the sudden knot in his stomach. “What, too many adoring fans crowding you at school? Because that can get annoying, I understand.”

Ladybug scoffed, rolling her eyes as she shot him an amused smirk.

“Please, I’m sure you’re the one doing the adoring over at your school.” She finished the last bit of her pizza, wiping her greasy hands on her uniform. “It’s just….I really want to tell this guy I like him, and I tried last year and it didn’t work out well, and I’m just nervous of it happening. I seem to have the worst luck around him.”

“My Lady, I think we all know bad luck is my specialty.” Chat hummed. “Well, if you want my opinion, someone told me recently that if you’re meant to be, you’ll be together eventually. So I think you should take whatever progress you got in the last year. Knowing you, I’m sure it was a lot.”

Ladybug paused to ponder over his words.

“Yeah, it was a lot, actually.” She smiled. “Thanks, Chat Noir. You really are full of surprises lately.”

Chat shrugged, flashing her an easygoing smile.

“I can be a surprising guy, Ladybug.” Glancing back at the now empty pizza box, he clicked his tongue. “All out; want me to grab more?”

“Nah, I’ll get it this time.” Ladybug flicked his bell before she got to her feet. “I’ll be back in a jiffy.”

“In a jiffy? Who are you?” Chat asked, snorting. She stuck her tongue out at him before she swung her yoyo off the building and took off. “Hm, maybe I can run home and get my laptop while she’s doing that.”

“What a romantic holiday for me! Too bad not everyone is celebrating  _ me _ !”

Chat threw his head back with a groan.

“Of course. Of  _ course _ !” He ran a hand through his hair, flinching when one of his claws snagged his (fake) ears. “Okay, let’s go find them.”

He launched off the rooftops, seeking out today’s troublemaker. It was easy, seeing the crowd of clearly lovestruck people follow someone, but not easy to who the akuma was. 

By all accounts, she looked like a regular woman, long dark hair with a crown of flowers, blood red pantsuit, and….an overly shiny heart-shaped locket. 

“Paris, come greet your goddess,” she called out, sitting on the shoulders of two of her followers. “I am Aphrodite, goddess of love! Let your hearts fill with love...for me!”

“Aphrodite?” Chat questioned, furrowing his eyebrows. “Wasn’t that the….no way.”

His ears perked up, moments before someone came up behind him and pushed him into the crowd, making him stumble right into Aphrodite’s view.

“My goddess, I bring you a gift,” crooned Ladybug, wrapping her yoyo around her partner, much to his disappointment. “A little kitty to do your bidding.”

“Wha-Ladybug!” Chat exclaimed, trying to get to his feet only for his partner to place her foot on his back and push him back down. She must have been taken by surprise on her way to the pizzeria. He was both relieved and furious he didn’t go himself now. “What do you want, Aphrodite?”

The self-proclaimed goddess feigned a pout as she crouched down, cupping his chin in her hand.

“I’m just making things right, kitten,” she said, her locket dangling right in front of him. If only he could grab it… “No one should feel unloved on this beautiful holiday, in this city, especially not the goddess of love herself. That’d just be too sad to be ironic, sweetie.”

“My goddess, look out!”

Aphrodite looked up just as someone knocked her in the face with - an umbrella?

Chat watched the woman go down, causing her followers to surround her with concern, only to look back at her attacker, eyes widening when he recognized her.

“Don’t call him sweetie,” hissed Bridgette, pointing the end of her umbrella at the woman. “I cannot believe you are ruining my date. Again!”

“How dare you attack my darling goddess!” Ladybug exclaimed, yanking on her yoyo, undoing the bindings on Chat Noir, and got ready to launch it against her (unknown) predecessor. “Once I get you-oof!”

“Sorry, My Lady!” Chat exclaimed as he tackled his partner to the ground. “Can’t let you follow a madwoman!” He looked over his shoulder at Bridgette, eyes blown wide. “You have to get out of here, uh, miss!”

Bridgette smiled apologetically, eyes on the crowd as they helped Aphrodite back to her feet.

“Thank you, darling, but you have your hands full with your partner,” she told him. “Let us handle this poor soul.”

“Us?” Chat questioned, leaning his head to the side as his partner tried to swipe at his face, despite him holding her down. “You don’t mean-”

“She does.” Felix straightened out his suit as he joined his fiance, holding what appeared to be a fencing foil. Where were they getting these things? “We know a thing or two about dealing with people like her.”

“You could never take down a goddess!” Ladybug hissed, finally shoving her partner off of her and scrambling to her feet. “If you know what’s good for you, Chat Noir, you’ll give up and follow me - and Aphrodite!”

Chat looked over his shoulder at his mentors, ready to ask if they were sure, but their steely expressions told him everything he needed to know.

“Okay, let’s dance, Ladybug,” he said, flashing a playful smile at his partner as he took out his baton. “Don’t be mad if I outshine you today.”

“ _ We’ll see about that _ !” 

Bridgette, meanwhile, knocked down yet another man with her umbrella, huffing in annoyance as he tried to grab at her dress as he fell.

“I am so sick of people ruining our date!” She exclaimed, glancing over at her fiance. “You alright over there?”

Felix ducked as someone tried to throw a patio chair at him, unable to stop his snort when it ended up hitting someone who suspicious looked just like Claude, and jabbed his foil sword at someone, startling them enough to stumble back so he could press his foot to their chest.

“I’m doing fine, ribbons,” he assured, catching sight of Aphrodite trying to escape at the end of the crowd. “In fact, I think I spotted our old friend.”

“I have to wonder what set her off after all this time,” remarked Bridgette, crouching down to avoid the woman who threw herself at her. She grimaced when the woman landed on top of the patio table nearby. “Come on, let’s go get that locket before Ladybug comes back.”

“Our boy will keep her plenty busy,” assured Felix. “On your left.”

Bridgette elbowed the man coming in, not sparing him a second glance, and weaved through the crowd to join her fiance at the front of the crowd. 

“I’m still angry she ruined our date,  _ again _ ,” she murmured. “We were just about to walk into the restaurant! I was gonna get my fancy shrimp! I’ll stab Hawkmoth myself with this umbrella if he has the misfortune of meeting me!”

Felix chuckled, stopping himself from kissing her because god, he loved her.

“He’d never last two seconds with you,” he assured before he turned his attention back to the fleeing akuma. He caught sight of the patio tables lining the block, the open umbrellas catching his attention in particular. “Do you remember how we defeated her the first time?”

Bridgette followed his gaze and gave him a look.

“I’m wearing heels, Felix!” She protested, even as she took off her shoes and ran over to the fire escape ladder nearby, climbing up until she was high enough to reach the umbrellas. “You owe me extra shrimp!”

Felix laughed, making his way over to Aphrodite, who was trying to get more and more followers to block the streets. 

“I think not, you wannabe goddess,” he called, swiftly weaving through the crowd, tripping a few people and getting closer to the akumatized woman. “You’ve made my fiance quite upset.”

“Poor thing,” crooned Aphrodite, eyes darting around as she clearly tried to plot an escape. “I have an idea; why don’t you ditch her and become my dear instead?”

“Hard pass, as my son would say,” replied Felix, jabbing at her with his foil, smirking when she stepped back. “I’m in a very committed relationship already.”

“What’s so great about getting married, huh?” Aphrodite hissed. “You could be engaged to the wrong person! To someone who doesn’t even love you as half as someone else!”

“I highly doubt that.” Felix took another jab at her, swiftly avoiding a follower that tried to throw a punch at him. “You see, if you love someone, you’re not afraid to take the right step at the right time. It sounds to me like you didn’t.”

Aphrodite’s eyes widened and she flushed pink, planting her feet.

“You don’t know me!” She yelled, clenching her fists. “But you  _ will  _ love me!”

“I doubt that too.” Felix stood straight, a hand behind his back, his foil pointed right at her, and for a split second, Aphrodite had the slightest feeling of dejavu. “Someone will love you, Aphrodite. Just not the person you love, it seems.”

Aphrodite furrowed her eyebrows, and then screamed as Bridgette threw herself off the umbrella, tackling her to the ground. He covered his mouth to hide his smile as his fiance grabbed hold of the locket and smashed it to the ground, releasing the akuma.

“I feel less mad now that I know she was heartbroken again, but she still ruined our date for the second time so…” Bridgette grabbed a nearby mime’s beret, using it to snatch up the akuma before it could get far. “Homemade butterfly net. Sorry Hawkmoth, but your little pets are flawed.”

Felix held out his hand, which she happily took as they stepped over the suddenly confused and still followers on the ground.

“Let’s go find the kids,” he said. “We have a dinner reservation to get to. And yes, I will get you extra shrimp.”

Bridgette smiled, leaning up to kiss his cheek.

“You know, this still isn’t the craziest Valentine’s Day we’ve had.” She laughed. “Do you remember that time with the twin mimes?”

“You mean store-brand Claude and his evil twin?” Felix remarked, earning a snort from his partner. “Yes, that was horrifying, though it had nothing on that dinner with my father - oh there they are.”

Chat snapped his fingers in front of the suddenly motionless Ladybug, a concerned look on his face.

“Relax, she’s fine,” assured Felix. “Has Plagg ever showed you how to purify an akuma?”

“Um, no? I didn’t know that was possible - did you guys defeat Aphrodite already?” Chat asked, bewildered. “We were gone for like five minutes.”

“Was it five minutes? We’re getting old,” remarked Bridgette, scrunching her nose up. “Here, a gift for you. Felix, I’m going to go get my shoes if you want to teach Adrien.”

“Thanks.” Felix placed his hands on his ward’s shoulders, ignoring how flabbergasted the younger hero looked. “It’s going to hurt you just a bit because it’s not something we do usually, but it’ll be only for a second. What’s that face for? Are you okay, did Ladybug hurt you?”

“No, no….” Chat shook his head, forcing himself out of his daze as he smiled at his mentor, feeling his heart swell for reasons unbeknownst to him. “I just have the coolest parents ever, and that’s definitely not something I thought I would say on Valentine’s Day.”

Felix’s eyebrows raised in surprise, but didn’t comment on it. 

Instead, he said, “After we fix everything, why don’t you join Bridgette and I for dinner? You deserve a nice night.”

Chat looked down at the squirming akuma in his grasp, stunned.

“Are you sure? It’s Valentine’s Day, you should spend it with someone you love-”

“We will be,” promised Felix. “Come on, let an old cat show you a new trick.”

The hero beamed, following his mentor’s instructions exactly, and watched as everything reversed, like a video being rewinded. He murmured some explanation to Ladybug, who seemed like she was in a hurry to get somewhere anyways, and walked in between his two mentors towards an old Italian restaurant he didn’t recognize.

They had been right: sometimes the perfect holiday didn’t go as planned, but Adrien wouldn’t trade this day for anything in the world. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you guys so much for reading! I know it's a lot in one package, but hopefully not too much that it's bad! If there's anything you think I could fix on, please let me know!
> 
> Josie's shiny wonderful mentor au art can be found here: http://edorazzi.tumblr.com/tagged/mentor-au
> 
> &
> 
> the piece in particular that inspired me for this: http://edorazzi.tumblr.com/post/181627493375/happy-new-year-%E3%83%BE-%E3%82%9D-at-a-new-years-party


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